Donald Trump and his team are reportedly debating “how much” to invade Mexico once he takes office, a new report claims.
Trump and his transition team staff are discussing a “soft invasion” of the country, Rolling Stone reports. These conversations come after Trump promised to “wage war” on drug cartels in Mexico both during his first term and on the campaign trail.
“How much should we invade Mexico?” a senior Trump transition member told Rolling Stone. “That is the question.”
This “soft invasion” would involve American special forces assassinating cartel leaders in Mexico, another source close to the president-elect told Rolling Stone.
Trump proposed a similar plan in private discussions earlier this year, Rolling Stone reported in May.
Three sources familiar with those conversations told Rolling Stone that Trump said that the US has “tougher killers than they do” and is mulling a similar plot to that carried out when American forces killed ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi in 2019. The deployment would be covert, the outlet reported, and would not rely on the Mexican government’s consent.
Trump alluded to a similar plan during and after his first term in office.
In 2019, Trump suggested sending troops to Mexico for “help in cleaning out” drug cartels.
“If Mexico needs or requests help in cleaning out these monsters, the United States stands ready, willing & able to get involved and do the job quickly and effectively,” Trump tweeted. “The great new President of Mexico has made this a big issue, but the cartels have become so large and powerful that you sometimes need an army to defeat an army!”
Former defense secretary Mark Esper also told CBS in 2022 that Trump suggested the US “shoot missiles into Mexico.” When CBS contacted Trump about the remark, his team responded, “no comment.”
Congressional lawmakers have also endorsed the idea.
Senator Marco Rubio, Trump’s pick for secretary of state, previously endorsed the idea of sending U.S. troops to Mexico to combat drug cartels, but under the condition that “there is cooperation from the Mexican government,” Rolling Stone reports. Fellow senator Tom Cotton said last year he supported sending US troops to Mexico without their government’s permission, Politico reported.
Representative Mike Waltz, who will now serve as Trump’s national security adviser, said last year that the US needs to approach drug cartels like terrorist organizations.
“We need to start thinking about these groups more like ISIS than we do the mafia,” Waltz said, according to Politico.
The Independent has contacted Trump’s transition team for comment.
